An A-Maize-ing Adventure by Janice Wenig

Ah October! A fall celebration with pumpkins, scarecrows, sweet smelling apples and cider, hayrides and haunted cornfields. Haunted cornfields? Well, what better place for one than Erie, PA or should I say Eerie, PA?

It was late October but some resplendant fall colors were still apparent, the weather temperate and pleasant. We met out guides, Jeff and Sue who had led the wonderful tour through Chautauqua, at the Burger King in Erie. Also waiting for us was Erin and her dog Sadie who drove up from just outside of Pittsburg.

Miss Caroline’s, a roadside market and specialty gift shop hosted the cornfield maze and opened early just for us. The normal start time being 1:00 pm, the food boothes and carny rides weren’t open for business yet. No problem, that was better for my diet anyway, and we set our sites on tackling the cornfield maze. Inside the maze was pretty neat. With the corn reaching skyward seven feet, disorientation could happen quite easily especially at night. Sue was talking to the owner/manager who said that the night before there were 3,000 people negotiating the maze and the party didn’t stop until 3:00 am!

We had a more leisurely stroll through the maze and the ghouls and monsters lurking around every bend weren’t nearly as scary as they would have been in the murky cloak of night. All sounds were eerily absorbed by the cornstalks as were the twenty two people and dogs who slipped into the cornstalks like the ballplayers in Field of Dreams. It was fun and over too soon (unless you chose to go through it again) but the fun ended with a chuckle. There was a huge, hairy spider suspended from a telephone pole that freaked out my dog, Kiana. She stared at it, creeped towards it hesitantly, two steps forward - one back, then stood on her hind legs to take a chomp out of it. Whew! We’re safe from that big ol’ nasty spider thanks to my fearless guard dog! Before exiting the maze, we peeked into a box to see a two headed pig. Crouching down to peer inside revealed a painting of a pig with a mirror at one end. Ha, ha very funny, a sucker born every minute and all of that.

The grounds had some permanent displays for the kids. Of course everyone of us “kids” had to climb on the mini Noah’s ark for pictures of themselves and the captain who just happened to have four legs, a tail and a long snout. A miniature log cabin with a working water wheel, painted plywood cutouts that you and Rover could stick your heads through, and giant hay bales painted to resemble a huge spider, a pumpkin and a funky purple monster all made for awesome backdrops for photos.

Miss Caroline’s even opened the doors of her gift shop to our four-legged pals! The dogs went nose to nose with an animated Dracula and perused shelves chock full of colorful decorations for every holiday season and every day in between.

Faint aromas wafted over from the vendors who had fired up their grills to tempt us with delectible goodies. We had an adventurous group because the most popular choice was ostrich burgers. They tasted just like - steak! You thought I was going to say chicken didn’t you? Ostrich is actually a red meat that’s lower in fat and cholesterol than beef and it tastes great (less filling!).

Miss Caroline’s was so thrilled to have such an unusual group as ours that it was their idea to have a canine costume contest judged by the “carnies” - a rough and tumble assemblage with long hair, tattoos, the ever present sun glasses, T-shirts, tattered blue jeans and the truckers version of Fort Knox - a wallet chained to their belt. We paraded past an improptu grandstand as they judged in costume and non-costume catagories. These guys were really serious! They put their heads together for a good fifteen minutes before a final decision was made. Patches, a dalmation mix, was the best behaved; Rebel, a doberman, was the prettiest (actually handsomest); Nikita, my husky, had the happiest face; shepherd mix Daisy’s cowboy getup was the funniest costume; and the yellow lab Rusty’s ladybug costume was the most original. All winners received a half gallon of the best apple cider I’ve ever tasted.

The fun continued as we piled into a hay wagon for a ride through the fields. What is it about sitting elbow to elbow on your butt in a pile of sweet smelling hay for a mere fifteen minute ride that’s so much fun? But the dogs will agree that nothing beats October fun like a hay ride. A much smaller horse drawn carriage took dogs and owners for rides, this too is a rarity since the carriage owners think the dogs will spook the horses. This one didn’t seem to mind in the least and the dogs behaved famously.

Wow! With so much activity we could end the day here and be totally satisfied but the fun had just begun. We saw a flea market on the way down and were going to make an unscheduled stop but it was closed when we drove past it on the way to Presque Isle State Park. Presque Isle is a beautiful, long narrow strip of land with sandy beaches and fitness trails on both sides. A busier trail I’ve never seen. It was a veritible super highway but in place of cars were people walking both with and without dogs, bicycles and several gaggles of rollerbladers, couples and whole families and this was a brisk October day with a wicked wind coming off the lake! I’d hate to imagine what the trails are like in warmer weather.

Jeff gave a narrated tour of the park including the houseboat section. The houseboats instead of looking simply like a boat that you could live on, looked like actual houses that just happened to be sitting on a raft. The houseboats were there before the land became a park and are grandfathered in under one condition - they can never leave the bay, if they do they are not permitted back in.

Also located in the park was the Coast Guard station. We could have toured the facility with the dogs but they had a prior commitment of some sort. Well, we’ll just have to come back is all! Completing the circuit, the Lady Kate moored at her dock was waiting for us. A bit prematurely, Old Man Winter thought he’d drop by early and give us a taste of what was to come. The bitter wind turned the normally calm bay into a choppy maelstrom. But the bay was nothing compared to the even rougher open water of Lake Erie where the Lady Kate normally sails.

The local news station sent a camera crew to film us as we climbed aboard. Chilly passengers huddled together were still able to talk cheerily to the reporter. Unfortunately, the Lady Kate was enclosed only at the bow which wasn’t big enough for all twenty two people and dogs, but we tried! Maybe it was a good thing; there was a lot less rockin’ and rollin’ with all that weight in the front holding the bow down!

If you could overlook the bitter wind, it was an extraordinarily picturesque boat ride. The water was a brilliant blue and the many inlets and bays were filled with fishermen, boaters and when the weather was warmer - water skiers and jet skiers. A replica of the brig Niagara, a frequent participant of tall ship festivals, bobbed majestically against her moorings. The Niagara and others like her were used in the Battle of Lake Erie with Commodore Perry. Brigs which are fighting ships, are surprisingly small and flat bottomed, typical of vessels used on lakes as opposed to ocean-going vessels. Erie, PA has a monument to Commodore Perry much like the one at Put-in-Bay although smaller.

Ah, home port at last, well not quite. Apparently, the water level has been way down this year so when atempting to dock we got hung up on a sand bar a few times and really churned up some muck as we tried, successfully I might add, to free ourselves. Safely back on terra firma, everyone made a mad dash for the warmth of the bus. It’s amazing what fresh air and activity can do for the appetite. The ostrich burgers were long gone by now and we were ready to tank up again.

One of the benefits of using a company like Destinations Plus is that they bring a lot of groups to area destinations, therefore they have some pull when it comes to unsual groups such as ourselves. Originally they were planning a picnic inthe park but thought better of it because of unpredictable fall weather. Brilliant forethought! After getting off the frosty boat, the picnic would have ended up on the bus. I was so cold that Jack Frost didn’t just nip at my nose, he bit the whole thing off!

Solution? The most awesome dining experience we’ve had with dogs to date! Picture this, we’re in the central terminal of an old train station which has been converted into a restaurant. Tables of four were set up with white table cloths, actual china, silverware and glassware (not a paper plate or plastic fork in sight!) and exquisite floral bouquets on every table. A buffet table laden with food (I could hear the table legs groaning with the effort to support the feast), waiters in pressed white shirts and black bow ties filled water glasses and coffee cups, another carved the roast “beast” (ham actually). In addition to the ham there was roast chicken, green beans with slivered almonds, new potatoes, salad, rolls and a mouth watering dessert. I wish the camera crew could have filmed this scene rather than the boat ride. Here in this elegant setting, in an historic location, with a feast fit for a king, clusters of white cloaked tables with fresh flowers, and at every table sat two to four dogs as well mannered as any charm school graduate.

There’s just something special about a really great meal. It can give you amnesia! We forgot about how cold we were on the boat ride a short while ago as we dined on fabulous food in an elegant, historic location. We really were spoiled and unfortunately, I don’t know how many times we can repeat this experience. But I for one took advantage of bragging rights when I got home! That’s what I love about putting these tours together - pushing the “no dogs allowed” barrier a little farther each time!

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